Physical consequences of falls in the elderly: a literature review from 1995 to 2010

In the last decade, population ageing has been registered as a global phenomenon. A relation exists between falling and ageing, since falling frequency increases significantly with age. In fact, one in three older adult falls annually. Although ageing is generically associated with decrease and degeneration of psychological and physical functions, it is still not common for the correct identification of risk factors to lead to a clinical prognosis of the elder being in risk of falling. Therefore, the goal of this review article is to identify, categorise and analyse typical ageing and fall factors mentioned in the literature as well as to quantify the number of times they were referenced. The research considered hundreds of publications, but analysis was then restricted to the 87 most pertinent articles written in English and published in journals or scientific magazines between 1995 and 2010. We concluded that falls among older adults can be characterised by the following: anatomic characteristics and physiological consequences of ageing; the pathologies that induce falls, which can be neurological, musculoskeletal, cardiovascular and other diseases; causes and risk factors of falls that can be behavioural, biological, environmental or socio-economic; type of physical consequences of falls, including fractures, bruises, injuries or other physical consequences; and strategies to prevent, mitigate or rehabilitate, which can be of a physical, environmental or behavioural nature.

Physical consequences of falls in the elderly: a literature review from 1995 to 2010

In the last decade, population ageing has been registered as a global phenomenon. A relation exists between falling and ageing, since falling frequency increases significantly with age. In fact, one in three older adult falls annually. Although ageing is generically associated with decrease and degeneration of psychological and physical functions, it is still not common for the correct identification of risk factors to lead to a clinical prognosis of the elder being in risk of falling. Therefore, the goal of this review article is to identify, categorise and analyse typical ageing and fall factors mentioned in the literature as well as to quantify the number of times they were referenced. The research considered hundreds of publications, but analysis was then restricted to the 87 most pertinent articles written in English and published in journals or scientific magazines between 1995 and 2010. We concluded that falls among older adults can be characterised by the following: anatomic characteristics and physiological consequences of ageing; the pathologies that induce falls, which can be neurological, musculoskeletal, cardiovascular and other diseases; causes and risk factors of falls that can be behavioural, biological, environmental or socio-economic; type of physical consequences of falls, including fractures, bruises, injuries or other physical consequences; and strategies to prevent, mitigate or rehabilitate, which can be of a physical, environmental or behavioural nature.

A digital game development education project

The success of the digital game industry is spawning several undergraduate degrees aiming at the training of digital game developers. Building adequate new courses curricula is not a trivial task and demands a profound analysis of the scientific areas to introduce as well as the dependencies throughout the entire degree. Another important aspect of every academic educational plan are the satellite projects that promote entrepreneurship and provide practical professional experiences to students. This paper presents the main guidelines adopted in the creation of the first digital game development undergraduate degree created in Portugal.

Cognitive intervention protocol for age-related memory impairments

With the number of elderly people increasing tremendously worldwide, comes the need for effective methods to maintain or improve older adults' cognitive performance. Using continuous neurofeedback, through the use of EEG techniques, people can learn how to train and alter their brain electrical activity. A software platform that puts together the proposed rehabilitation methodology has been developed: a digital game protocol that supports neurofeedback training of alpha and theta rhythms, by reading the EEG activity and presenting it back to the subject, interleaved with neurocognitive tasks such as n-Back and Corsi Block-Tapping. This tool will be used as a potential rehabilitative platform for age-related memory impairments.

Anuário do sector empresarial do estado 2010

Diariamente os meios de Comunicação Social questionam o papel do Sector Empresarial do Estado (SEE) na economia portuguesa e, em particular, o contributo deste sector para a dívida pública, a premência da sua existência e a eventual adopção de medidas políticas que visem a privatização de algumas Entidades que o integram. E, neste contexto, são frequentes as referências ao volume dos passivos, aos prejuízos verificados, aos vencimentos praticados ou ao número de administradores dos Conselhos de Administração. Por outro lado, alguns dos partidos políticos têm-se pronunciado sobre este sector aludindo-se ao esforço financeiro do Estado com maior acuidade pela actual crise económica mundial. Na qualidade de académicos, e alguns pela experiência adquirida enquanto autores do Anuário Financeiros dos Municípios Portugueses, considerámos oportuno proceder à análise económica e financeira do SEE. O presente estudo incide sobre as Entidades que integram a carteira principal das participações do Estado, procedendo-se numa primeira análise ao enquadramento do Sector Empresarial do Estado no Sector Público Português, identificando-se as entidades da Carteira de Participações da DGTF, da PARPÚBLICA e dos Hospitais. Analisa- se ainda o SEE numa perspectiva macroeconómica. No capítulo 2 apresenta-se a metodologia de estudo que conduziu à análise económica-financeira constante no capítulo 3.